Today tried to reach Merv Fingas, author of "The Basics of Oil Spill Cleanup" and other books. I'd emailed him a couple of days ago, receiving no response, called his office. Except it wasn't his office anymore. I was told by the person who picked up the phone that Fingas was retired. He added that he's received a ton of media calls and doesn't want to deal with them -- wants to "enjoy his retirement". I don't know any other specifics about Fingas, he may be taking care of a sick loved one for all I know, but I've seen this type of thing before: Someone spends their life on a subject and when their knowledge becomes relevant for a public discussion, they clam up, further impoverishing our public sphere. I'd imagine they are thinking to themselves that people were not listening when they should have been -- I know I've thought that when I had expertise that people suddenly were interested in. But the overwhelming need to to meet people where they are and take them to a better place. Otherwise the public sphere is dominated by the ignorant.
My friend and sometimes collaborator Matthew Bradley sent me a link to the Onion piece about Noam Chomsky this morning, "Exhausted Noam Chomsky Just Going To Try And Enjoy The Day For Once."
Wrote Matt: "Hate and love this sort of parody all at once..."
I reluctantly forwarded it to Chomsky: "If you haven't already gotten 237 emails about this."
Chomsky: "Now 238. I'll have to look at it I guess, but the title sounds like an original idea."Me: "Perhaps it would be funniest if you didn't read it. I could write up alittle blog post about it. (which you wouldn't have to read)."
Chomsky: "OK, deal."
So, done.
This morning I saw a news flash about 80 killed in Iraq (now over 100). I stared out the window for a minute, then went on writing a couple of news releases about Elena Kagan -- because what happens to that may have an impact on whether the next war happens. I think many people find real joy in friends and family, in nature and in art. But many people's emotional lives are tied up in how cute and funny it is that Thurgood Marshall called Kagan "shorty" according to Obama from the "news" conference this morning. Several years ago, I began a discussion with a friend named Thomas, who works down the hall from me. Thomas' contention was that it's basically useless to try to "fight the system". "The horse is out of the barn," he'd say about ecological and other disasters. "Drink lots of wine, have lots of sex." I mentioned this to a couple of activist friends. One noted leftist replied: "Tough to argue with that." But I think whatever the superficial circumstances of one's life, a large part of the issue is feeling a connection to other people, many or the vast majority of whom you'll never know; many of whom are yet to be born. The joy I feel by writing my best approximation of the relevant truth everyday in a news release and try to reach the public mind with that I think gives me a bigger jolt than Thomas gets from varied "pleasures" (not that I'm pretending to be a stranger to them). That's when things go well. When things go badly -- when things seem useless, when some sense of love doesn't seem to be pushing things forward, when I feel isolated -- then the tiniest bit of work seems like drudgery.
This morning I saw a news flash about 80 killed in Iraq (now over 100). I stared out the window for a minute, then went on writing a couple of news releases about Elena Kagan -- because what happens to that may have an impact on whether the next war happens. I think many people find real joy in friends and family, in nature and in art. But many people's emotional lives are tied up in how cute and funny it is that Thurgood Marshall called Kagan "shorty" according to Obama from the "news" conference this morning. Several years ago, I began a discussion with a friend named Thomas, who works down the hall from me. Thomas' contention was that it's basically useless to try to "fight the system". "The horse is out of the barn," he'd say about ecological and other disasters. "Drink lots of wine, have lots of sex." I mentioned this to a couple of activist friends. One noted leftist replied: "Tough to argue with that." But I think whatever the superficial circumstances of one's life, a large part of the issue is feeling a connection to other people, many or the vast majority of whom you'll never know; many of whom are yet to be born. The joy I feel by writing my best approximation of the relevant truth everyday in a news release and try to reach the public mind with that I think gives me a bigger jolt than Thomas gets from varied "pleasures" (not that I'm pretending to be a stranger to them). That's when things go well. When things go badly -- when things seem useless, when some sense of love doesn't seem to be pushing things forward, when I feel isolated -- then the tiniest bit of work seems like drudgery.
At about 8:00 this morn, I Twittered that "Faisal Shahzad's house was foreclosed" -- got retweeted and forwarded by a bunch of people. Getting some pickup by some outlets now, AP got records, but still largely ignored by the mass media outlets as far as I can tell. I found out about the foreclosure by finding the coverage of a local commercial station, WTNH. This is amazing -- I'd think that every major news organization had someone that looked at the local station's coverage, but it doesn't get into their coverage. All this speculation regarding his links to Pakistan (without explaining why people in Pakistan and the entire region might resent US policy, not just recently, but for decades) while omitting this actual fact. If you're going to speculate, atleast put everything on the table.
Today's NPT conference -- and the repeated calls for a nuclear-free Mideast -- reminded me of Cirincione's comments on The Diane Rehm Show on April 12, 2010 (listen to audio beginning 26:50). Cirincione claimed Israel has a "quite strong non proliferation record in recent decades ... Israel has not been a stimulus to an arms race in the Middle East ... Iran has been much more of a stimulus."
This is incredibly problematic in a number of ways. Here's one: "Myth: Israel's Strike on Iraqi Reactor Hindered Iraqi Nukes."I had speculated that the cancellation of a couple of films on Palestinians were not for political reasons, but apparently, at least one cancellation was. See: "Palestinian Human Rights Block-Ed From Human Rights Festival."
Amnesty International festival at Silver Spring mall caused Eddie to buy clothing he wouldn't otherwise.
Only caught the tail end of the festival, such as it was. Two films on Gaza were cancelled, not sure if it was political, more likely disorganization and paltry attendence. An activist told me she confronted Sen Mukulski about Gaza, Iraq and Gitmo, but she would have none of it.
Now Syria a nuke target? AFP: "The United States said Wednesday it considered 'all options' on the table if Syria is found to have supplied Scud missiles to Hezbollah, posing a major threat for Israel." http://tinyurl.com/2b4fqpd
Tepid and a couple of years late, but ABC's "This Week" shows signs of journalism -- Jake Tapper asks Bill Clinton: "One of the things that President Obama is pushing for is regulation of derivatives, and also with a thing called the Volcker rule, he’s trying to separate commercial banking interests from investment banking interests. These were things that were the opposite policies of Treasury Security Rubin and Summers at that time, do you think in retrospect they gave you bad advice on these issues?"On the roundtable, Donna Brazile shows the militarism of the the establishment of the Democratic Party should anyone be blind: "Well, you know, I think the president continues to try to reach out through third parties and others to get Tehran to pay attention, but Tehran has its own agenda. And you saw it during the nuclear summit, that the president sat down with the leader of China to try to get China once again back at the negotiating table, because that's the key to opposing tough sanctions, what they call one of the big options and the last of many other options.
"But this week, the House and Senate will sit down to try to strengthen that bill that they've put together that will impose even more tougher sanctions on Iran.
"I think, at the end of the day, the administration has to lay it all out on the table. They said they would do it in January. It's now April. I don't believe, you know, much activity has gone on. And this memo is a reminder that Iran is proceeding to form that bomb." [emphasis added]